{"id":15560,"date":"2020-08-08T20:42:55","date_gmt":"2020-08-08T20:42:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/?p=15560"},"modified":"2020-08-09T11:01:13","modified_gmt":"2020-08-09T11:01:13","slug":"anniversary-of-russian-aggression-and-occupation-of-georgia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/anniversary-of-russian-aggression-and-occupation-of-georgia\/","title":{"rendered":"Anniversary of Russian aggression and occupation of Georgia"},"content":{"rendered":"

In 2008, Russia attacked Georgia and unleashed the first in the 21st century war against another country in Europe.\u00a0It began on the night of August 8, when Russian troops crossed the Georgian border.\u00a0Since then, a bloody date has been engraved in history: 08.08.08.\u00a0This day can be considered the first open military aggression in a series of subsequent wars led by Putin’s Russia in the 21st century to which the world community did not respond properly and in a timely manner.\u00a0Therefore, new adventures of the Kremlin were realized in the future: the conquest of the Ukrainian Crimea and the war in eastern Ukraine.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Prerequisites<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The preconditions for Russia’s aggression against Georgia were laid in the 1990s, when the Moscow-backed separatist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia declared “independence” from Georgia. After the local wars, Russia imposed a truce on Georgia and placed its “peacekeepers” in the conflict zone.\u00a0But Moscow did not adhere to the principle of neutrality, ignoring systematic ceasefire violations by South Ossetian “militia”.\u00a0In addition, Russian passports were issued en masse to residents of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.<\/p>\n

On the eve of the invasion of Georgia, Russia conducted large-scale military exercises Caucasus-2008.\u00a0Increasing the intensity of provocations, Moscow was waiting for a good excuse for open aggression.\u00a0Their excuse was the Georgian army’s attempt to put an end to the Ossetian shelling and the creeping occupation of the border territories.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Photo from InformNapalm’s OSINT research on the participation of the 417th separate reconnaissance battalion of the Russian Armed Forces in the occupation of the cities of Gori and Tskhinvali in 2008<\/em><\/h4>\n

On August 8, Russia announced the protection of “its citizens” in Georgia.\u00a0Russian military aircraft attacked Georgian positions.\u00a0By Kremlin\u2019s order, the Russian army bombed towns, ports and military facilities throughout Georgia.\u00a0Russia launched an offensive from the territory of Abkhazia. In addition to the two separatist regions, the adjacent Georgian territories were occupied. The Russians almost completely destroyed the Georgian navy on the Black Sea.<\/p>\n

Though the Georgians had some success, such as the defeat of the staff convoy of the Russian 58th Army and the destruction of the Tu-22M bomber, the forces of the parties were too unequal.\u00a0As Russian troops advanced and threatened the capital city of Tbilisi, Georgian authorities declared a unilateral ceasefire.\u00a0Georgia had launched peace initiatives, but Russian shelling continued.<\/p>\n

Five days of war claimed hundreds of lives.\u00a0Thousands were left homeless.\u00a0Almost 20% of the sovereign country is still occupied by Russian troops and Kremlin-controlled forces.\u00a0The political outcome of the war was Moscow’s de jure recognition of the “independence” of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the curtailment of previous peacekeeping formats, and the further militarization of the occupied territories.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Map of Georgia.\u00a0The occupied regions are marked in red \/ Source: Georgian Foreign Ministry.\u00a0<\/em><\/h4>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

“Creeping occupation” and kidnapping<\/strong><\/h2>\n

But Russia has not stopped there, and today the\u00a0“creeping occupation” continues<\/a>: Russian border guards periodically move their positions deeper into Georgia, expanding the occupied territory.\u00a0Also, Russian special services and Russian-controlled gangs in the surrounding areas\u00a0kidnap Georgian citizens<\/a>\u00a0who are sometimes returned for ransom, and sometimes brutally tortured and killed.<\/p>\n

Russia also uses the occupied territories of Georgia\u00a0as hubs<\/a>\u00a0for aggression against Ukraine.<\/p>\n

OSINT research of occupation<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Volunteers of InformNapalm<\/a> international intelligence community\u00a0have collected a significant amount of information about servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces who took part in the aggression against Georgia or serve in the occupation forces.\u00a0In particular, data on soldiers and officers of the 7th Russian Military Base (military unit 09332<\/a>) based near Gudauta, and the 4th Military Base (military unit 66431<\/a>) based in Tskhinvali and Java.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Servicemen of these Russian military bases also took an active part in the aggression against Ukraine.<\/p>\n

List of studies on aggression against Georgia<\/strong><\/h2>\n

List 672 \u2013 Identification data of Russians Involved in the Aggression against Georgia in August 2008<\/a><\/p>\n

Personal Data Disclosed 140 Officers and Sergeants 4th Military Base of Russia in Georgia<\/a><\/p>\n

22 Russian servicemen who participated in the war against Georgia<\/a><\/p>\n

21 of 35: Russian artillerymen of the 7th Military Base involved in shelling of Ukraine identified<\/a><\/p>\n

Service record of contract soldier from the 7th military base: Crimea, Donbas, Abkhazia<\/a><\/p>\n

Journey of Russian Occupant: Gudauta \u2013 Rostov \u2013 Donbas \u2013 Khmeimim<\/a><\/p>\n

Conclusions<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Russia’s unpunished armed aggression against the sovereign state of Georgia in 2008 and the sluggish reaction of the world community laid the groundwork for the Kremlin’s further military adventures in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Russia’s appetites are growing and more and more countries are falling victim to a hybrid war involving both regular Russian forces and armed proxy groups. For many years, Ukraine has remained the target of Russian aggression which potentially can also spread to Belarus and the Baltic states. Only a consolidated reaction from the world community, the strengthening of economic sanctions and the support for the liberation of the occupied territories can force the aggressor to abandon its further plans. The price of aggression must become unaffordable for Russia, and the top military-political leadership and war criminals must be punished fairly. Because unpunished evil grows.<\/p>\n

Translated by Svitlana Kemblowski. Distribution and reprint with reference to the source is welcome! (Creative Commons \u2014 Attribution 4.0 International \u2014 CC BY 4.0) InformNapalm social media pages:\u00a0Facebook<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Twitter\u00a0<\/strong><\/a>\/\u00a0Telegram<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

InformNapalm<\/strong>\u00a0is a fully independent community that does not receive any financial support from any country\u2019s government or large donors. Our information resources are funded by our volunteers, as well as our readers sponsoring our project with small donations. You can also support the community by signing up for monthly mini-donations through the\u00a0Patreon charitable platform<\/strong><\/a>. Together we will achieve more!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2008, Russia attacked Georgia and unleashed the first in the 21st century war against another country…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":106,"featured_media":15561,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[762,528],"tags":[86,649],"class_list":["post-15560","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-georgia","category-news","tag-georgia","tag-russo-georgian-war"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAnniversary of Russian aggression and occupation of Georgia - InformNapalm.org (English)<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In 2008, Russia attacked Georgia and unleashed the first in the 21st century war against another country in Europe. 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After the local wars, Russia imposed a truce on Georgia and placed its \"peacekeepers\" in the conflict zone.\u00a0But Moscow did not adhere to the principle of neutrality, ignoring systematic ceasefire violations by South Ossetian \"militia\".\u00a0In addition, Russian passports were issued en masse to residents of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.\r\n\r\nOn the eve of the invasion of Georgia, Russia conducted large-scale military exercises Caucasus-2008.\u00a0Increasing the intensity of provocations, Moscow was waiting for a good excuse for open aggression.\u00a0Their excuse was the Georgian army's attempt to put an end to the Ossetian shelling and the creeping occupation of the border territories.\r\n\r\n<img src=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/ua\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2020\/08\/2.jpg\" \/>\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Photo from InformNapalm's OSINT research on the participation of the 417th separate reconnaissance battalion of the Russian Armed Forces in the occupation of the cities of Gori and Tskhinvali in 2008<\/em><\/h4>\r\nOn August 8, Russia announced the protection of \"its citizens\" in Georgia.\u00a0Russian military aircraft attacked Georgian positions.\u00a0By Kremlin\u2019s order, the Russian army bombed towns, ports and military facilities throughout Georgia.\u00a0Russia launched an offensive from the territory of Abkhazia. In addition to the two separatist regions, the adjacent Georgian territories were occupied. The Russians almost completely destroyed the Georgian navy on the Black Sea.\r\n\r\nThough the Georgians had some success, such as the defeat of the staff convoy of the Russian 58th Army and the destruction of the Tu-22M bomber, the forces of the parties were too unequal.\u00a0As Russian troops advanced and threatened the capital city of Tbilisi, Georgian authorities declared a unilateral ceasefire.\u00a0Georgia had launched peace initiatives, but Russian shelling continued.\r\n\r\nFive days of war claimed hundreds of lives.\u00a0Thousands were left homeless.\u00a0Almost 20% of the sovereign country is still occupied by Russian troops and Kremlin-controlled forces.\u00a0The political outcome of the war was Moscow's de jure recognition of the \"independence\" of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the curtailment of previous peacekeeping formats, and the further militarization of the occupied territories.\r\n\r\n<img src=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/ua\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2020\/08\/HRR.jpg\" \/>\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Map of Georgia.\u00a0The occupied regions are marked in red \/ Source: Georgian Foreign Ministry.\u00a0<\/em><\/h4>\r\n<h2><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n<h2><strong>\"Creeping occupation\" and kidnapping<\/strong><\/h2>\r\nBut Russia has not stopped there, and today the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/ua\/novi-provokatsii-u-zoni-rosiiskoi-oku\/\">\"creeping occupation\" continues<\/a>: Russian border guards periodically move their positions deeper into Georgia, expanding the occupied territory.\u00a0Also, Russian special services and Russian-controlled gangs in the surrounding areas\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/moscow-backed-puppet-regime-in-south-ossetia-advancing-onto-georgian-territory\/\">kidnap Georgian citizens<\/a>\u00a0who are sometimes returned for ransom, and sometimes brutally tortured and killed.\r\n\r\nRussia also uses the occupied territories of Georgia\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/russia-plans-supply-coal-ukrainian-donbas-abkhazia-turkey\/\">as hubs<\/a>\u00a0for aggression against Ukraine.\r\n<h2><strong>OSINT research of occupation<\/strong><\/h2>\r\nVolunteers of <a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/\">InformNapalm<\/a> international intelligence community\u00a0have collected a significant amount of information about servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces who took part in the aggression against Georgia or serve in the occupation forces.\u00a0In particular, data on soldiers and officers of the 7th Russian Military Base (<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/db\/russian-aggression\/#lang=en&page=m_unit&fid=09332\">military unit 09332<\/a>) based near Gudauta, and the 4th Military Base (<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/db\/russian-aggression\/#lang=en&page=m_unit&fid=66431\">military unit 66431<\/a>) based in Tskhinvali and Java.\r\n\r\n<img src=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2016\/11\/Arta7-Infigraphic_eng-1024x724.png\" \/>\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n<img src=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2018\/03\/4_base_en.jpg\" \/>\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nServicemen of these Russian military bases also took an active part in the aggression against Ukraine.\r\n<h2><strong>List of studies on aggression against Georgia<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/list-672-identification-data-of-russians-involved-in-the-aggression-against-georgia-in-august-2008\/\">List 672 \u2013 Identification data of Russians Involved in the Aggression against Georgia in August 2008<\/a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/personal-data-disclosed-140-officers-sergeants-4th-military-base-russia-georgia\/\">Personal Data Disclosed 140 Officers and Sergeants 4th Military Base of Russia in Georgia<\/a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/22-russian-servicemen-participated-war-georgia\/\">22 Russian servicemen who participated in the war against Georgia<\/a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/russian-artillerymen-7th-military-base\/\">21 of 35: Russian artillerymen of the 7th Military Base involved in shelling of Ukraine identified<\/a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/service-record-of-contract-soldier-from-the-7th-military-base-crimea-donbas-abkhazia\/\">Service record of contract soldier from the 7th military base: Crimea, Donbas, Abkhazia<\/a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/en\/journey-russian-occupant-gudauta-rostov-donbas-khmeimim\/\">Journey of Russian Occupant: Gudauta \u2013 Rostov \u2013 Donbas \u2013 Khmeimim<\/a>\r\n<h2><strong>Conclusions<\/strong><\/h2>\r\nRussia's unpunished armed aggression against the sovereign state of Georgia in 2008 and the sluggish reaction of the world community laid the groundwork for the Kremlin's further military adventures in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Russia's appetites are growing and more and more countries are falling victim to a hybrid war involving both regular Russian forces and armed proxy groups. For many years, Ukraine has remained the target of Russian aggression which potentially can also spread to Belarus and the Baltic states. Only a consolidated reaction from the world community, the strengthening of economic sanctions and the support for the liberation of the occupied territories can force the aggressor to abandon its further plans. The price of aggression must become unaffordable for Russia, and the top military-political leadership and war criminals must be punished fairly. Because unpunished evil grows.\r\n\r\n<img class=\"alignleft lazyloaded\" src=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2015\/12\/InformNapalm_logo_05.png\" width=\"157\" height=\"69\" data-src=\"https:\/\/informnapalm.org\/fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2015\/12\/InformNapalm_logo_05.png\" \/>Translated by Svitlana Kemblowski. Distribution and reprint with reference to the source is welcome! (Creative Commons \u2014 Attribution 4.0 International \u2014 CC BY 4.0) InformNapalm social media pages:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/informnapalm24en\/\"><strong>Facebook<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/newsburko\"><strong>Twitter\u00a0<\/strong><\/a>\/\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/t.me\/informnapalm\"><strong>Telegram<\/strong><\/a>\r\n\r\n<strong>InformNapalm<\/strong>\u00a0is a fully independent community that does not receive any financial support from any country\u2019s government or large donors. Our information resources are funded by our volunteers, as well as our readers sponsoring our project with small donations. You can also support the community by signing up for monthly mini-donations through the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/join\/informnapalm\"><strong>Patreon charitable platform<\/strong><\/a>. 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